Whether you decide to hold court, make tracks or stay the course, Middle Georgia’s warm climate and wide-open spaces are well suited for any recreational ambition.
SPORTS
One of the many benefits of the Midstate climate is being able to play golf during any time of the year. There are 25 golf courses in the area; 19 are public or municipal, allowing golfers a chance to play on a variety of courses. Fourteen of the courses are in the two most populated counties, Houston and Bibb. But some smaller counties satisfy the need to swing a 9 iron as well. Pulaski County is the home of Southern Hills Golf Club, which Golf Digest magazine named among the top five courses in the United States for service and value.
And a short drive away are great courses around the Lake Oconee resort area where the Golf Club of Cuscowilla and Great Waters at Reynolds Plantation are located. Both made Golf Digest’s list of Top 100 public golf courses in the country. For fans hoping to rub elbows with Tiger Woods, the world-renowned Augusta National, home of The Masters, is only a few hours east.
Tennis is another year-round sport in the Midstate. Courts are always open, and with countless public tennis courts, many communities offer league play and tournaments. The Macon Tennis Association, founded in the early 1970s, has a membership of more than 1,500 with more than 80 teams in league play. The tennis association has received national and regional recognition as a Community Tennis Association of Excellence and hosts several statewide tournaments each year for adults and juniors.
Middle Georgia’s gentle rolling terrain makes for excellent road race courses, providing enough challenge for professional athletes, without being too daunting for beginners. Races include the Museum of Aviation Marathon in Warner Robins in January, the Macon Triathlon in May and the annual Labor Day 10-kilometer race in Macon.
No matter your sport of choice, area colleges provide ample opportunity for cheering for the local team. Mercer University has a Division I basketball team, and Fort Valley State University fields a Division II football team well known for its ability to send players on to the National Football League.
Macon’s Central City Park is the home of the 80-year-old Luther Williams Field, the second-oldest minor-league baseball stadium in the country. At various times Luther Williams has been the home field for Pete Rose, Tony Perez and Chipper Jones. Now it is home to the Georgia Sports Academy Giants of the Great South League, a wood-bat collegiate summer league.Warner Robins Little League teams have enjoyed remarkable success in recent years, winning the baseball World Series title in 2007 and girls’ softball World Series title in 2009.
High schools in the region boast a broad array of championship-caliber athletic teams, both in the Georgia High School Association as well as the Georgia Independent School Association. On cool fall evenings high school stadiums in Macon and Dublin are packed with families and students eating concession-stand hotdogs and waving pompoms. Body paint and noisemakers are brought out in full force for football rivalries such as the Warner Robins-Northside series, which are highly anticipated each year. And for times when watching pro sports on TV just won’t cut it, our state teams, the Atlanta Braves, Falcons, Hawks and Thrashers are just a short drive up I-75. Just an hour north of Macon is Atlanta Motor Speedway, which hosts two NASCAR Sprint Cup races each season.
HUNTING/FISHING
As a cherished pastime, as well as an environmental service, hunting in Middle Georgia is wildly popular. Believe it or not, many weddings are postponed until the off-season so that rehearsal dinner planning won’t take precedent over – you guessed it — deer hunting. State-owned areas include the Rum Creek Wildlife Management Area in Monroe County, Cedar Creek WMA in Jones County, Oaky Woods WMA in Houston County, Ocmulgee WMA in Bleckley County and River Bend WMA in Laurens County. Federal hunting areas include the Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge in Jones County, Bond Swamp NWR in Bibb County and the Oconee National Forest in Jones and Monroe Counties. In addition to deer, other game animals include turkey, bear, feral hog and quail.
Midstate rivers and lakes offer mainly bass, bream, crappie and catfish. Lake Juliette is known for its prize-winning striped bass, some weighing in at more than 37 pounds. You can wet your line at High Falls State Park in Monroe County, Lake Tobesofkee in Bibb County, Houston Lake near Perry, the Ocmulgee Fishing Area in Bleckley County or Buckeye Park Lake in Laurens County, as well as the various rivers in the area.
CAMPING/HIKING
In an area with such fast-growing communities, the Midstate area has taken the time to protect the wildlife that also calls this region home. Jones County’s Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge, for example, is one of the few surviving habitats of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. The refuge has miles of hiking trails winding alongside the park’s creeks and lakes. Dausett Trails also offers hiking and biking trails.
The Ocmulgee National Monument has succeeded in protecting the fragile history of the region’s first inhabitants. Trails take visitors through the wetlands near the base of the historic Indian temple mound, constructed between 900-950 A.D.
High Falls State Park has more than 100 campsites within its 1,050 acres of protected woodlands. Hikers can follow the sound of the rushing Towaliga River to its beautiful scenic waterfall, or sign up for ranger-led canoe excursions, wildlife watches and moonlight hikes. Numerous public campsites are available at Rum Creek and Cedar Creek wildlife management areas, Lake Tobesofkee and Lake Juliette.
For a more urban setting, the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail in downtown Macon meanders along the banks of the river under shady trees with a wide, paved pathway perfect for bicycling, walking and jogging. This recently opened 180-acre Amerson Water Works Park features a canoe launch, trails, a pavilion and a playground. Currently the park is open on weekends only.
